The method of photography known as tilt-shifting has become popular in recent years, especially the off-shoot known as "miniature faking." It's a process that makes a location seem like a miniature model. As it turns out, the trick works great in video games as well.
The following video, which first popped up on Reddit, has captured a number of scenes from "Battlefield 3" via the same method. As the authors, Independent Gamers Production, suggest in the annotations, it is best viewed in 720p HD:
What was originally a highly realistic looking game now appears even more so, and the footage above is at times indistinguishable from tilt-shifted footage from real life. The only real give away is the explosion in the very beginning, along with the uniform tides hitting the shores, also early on.
Those knowledgeable with picture taking are quick to note that it's not "true" tilt-shifting and is somewhat of a misnomer.
It would be interesting to see this same method used in other games that are not steeped in reality, like "Halo," or even "Super Mario Galaxy."
Matthew Hawkins is an NYC-based game journalist who has also written for EGM, GameSetWatch, Gamasutra, Giant Robot, and numerous others. He also self-publishes his own game culture zine, is part of Attract Mode, and co-hosts The Fangamer Podcast. You can keep tabs on him via Twitter, or his personal home-base, FORT90.com.
